Economic Evaluation of Newborn Hearing Screening Procedures*

In the past few years, there has been a growing interest in the medical literature about the study of the different existing screening procedures to detect hearing impairment in infants and young children. However, concerning their economic evaluation, there are some important aspects, such as indirect costs, which are not considered by that literature. Here, we present an economic evaluation of these screening procedures, using utility theory, to measure benefits of a health care program, i.e. a cost-utility analysis. The analysis is presented from different points of view, depending on the cost we would like to compute. If we only consider direct costs, then targeted procedures, based on high risk criteria are preferred. On the other hand, if indirect costs, such as special education, and disability allowances were computed, then cost-utility analysis would advocate for the implementation of universal screening procedures.